With the holiday shopping season on the horizon, a little extra cash could help.

You could be entitled to some of the near $25 million owed to individuals, municipalities and organizations as part of the unclaimed funds program out of the Office of the New York State Comptroller.

So far, the state has collected more than $12 billion from several sources, including inactive bank accounts, expired gift cards, rental security deposits and uncashed checks, among others.

According to the Office of Unclaimed Funds, the Mohawk Valley has nearly 70,000 claims that have not been collected since the program started in 1943:

* Herkimer County: $3,402,822.68 among 10,862 accounts.

* Madison County: $4,159,172.80 among 10,484 accounts.

* Oneida County: $17,431,974.08 among 46,330 accounts.

If a bank account is opened and neglected, people can forget about the money. State law requires insurance agencies, banks and other businesses to attempt to notify the owner of those abandoned funds through mailers or newspaper listings, but a connection always can’t be made. That money is then turned over to the state.

November is the one month that the comptroller’s office receives the most funds because that is the deadline for banks to turn over their unclaimed funds, said Nikki Jones, deputy press secretary for Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

“On average, we return about $1 million a day,” she said.

Unclaimed funds can happen to anyone – Jones said a forgotten childhood bank account of DiNapoli’s was nearly turned over as unclaimed funds. Documentation, such as change-of-address proof and Social Security cards, are needed in order to recover any money, however.

And more than just individuals are entitled to this money: municipalities and agencies, such as school districts often have funds. Some accounts go back decades, Jones said.

People can search to see if they have unclaimed funds through an online database (https://ouf.osc.state.ny.us/ouf/), and by calling or emailing the office. Making a claim for that money can be done online or through the mail.

Sometimes, individuals don’t know they have money left in their names; Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi, D-Utica, has seen that firsthand after hosting local events during which people can see if they’re due funds. He said he expects to host a similar event some time next year.

Brindisi said he hasn’t searched his name in the database before, but added that several thousand dollars have been recovered at the events he’s helped to organize.

“The state can’t spend this money, but sometimes you need to track down the recipients,” he said. “It’s just sitting in an account, waiting.”